


Kindred

by Texan_Red_Rose



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkwardness, F/F, Financial Issues, Penny (RWBY) is a Child, Single Parents
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-09
Updated: 2019-01-10
Packaged: 2019-10-07 07:22:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17361536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Texan_Red_Rose/pseuds/Texan_Red_Rose
Summary: Winter's done everything in her power to provide for her daughter but being a single parent is never easy. Yang understands that struggle all too well. When the two cross paths in a park, it seems like a chance encounter that'll never repeat, but the world is much too small for that.





	1. By Chance

The first tendrils of morning light fell across the city as everyone awoke to start the day, more and more cars beginning to flood the streets. Well, almost everyone, Winter thought, pulling into the run down apartment complex and grateful to have made it home from her graveyard shift in one piece. Six months pulling fourteen hour shifts, only managing to sleep when her sister happened to be free. Today wouldn’t be one of those days, however, seeing as Weiss had her own job and Blake, her girlfriend, seemed indisposed as well. Which wouldn’t be a problem, really, even as the engine sputtered while she pulled up to her unit; it just meant that she’d have to hope her daughter would be inclined for a nap around two in the afternoon. A two hour nap sounded like heaven, frankly, but she had to lightly slap her cheeks to discourage the thought.  

Sleep would come later. She hoped, anyway.

Pulling herself out of the vehicle, Winter trudged up the stairs- three flights- to her apartment, sliding her key into the door and summoning her strength before opening it.

“Mom!” A little voice called out before the patter of feet gave her warning to brace herself as a five-year-old slammed into her. “You’re home!”

“Yes, Penny, I’m home.” She smiled- a small, tired thing, but it existed nonetheless- and smoothed the little girl’s hair before bending down to kiss her forehead while brushing back ginger bangs. “Were you good for Aunt Weiss?”

“Uh huh!”  

“She was an angel.” Aforementioned aunt appeared from the only bedroom, throwing a blazer over her shoulders. “She even woke up before me this morning and dressed herself.” Stopping by the door to grab her purse, Weiss chuckled at the mile wide smile on Penny’s face. “She seems very excited this morning.”

“We’re going to the park today!”

A jolt went through Winter’s body at those words. She’d completely forgotten about that promise and just the thought made her back ache but she quickly schooled her expression into one of pleasant surprise.

“Oh, right, thank you for reminding me, Sweetheart,” she said, doing her best to mirror her daughter’s enthusiasm.

However, it didn’t quite work as the light in those bright green eyes dimmed. “Unless Mom’s tired?”

That was the excuse she’d given several times before but she had to draw the line.

“Mom’s not too tired.” Weiss looked at her then, obviously disbelieving, but she ignored it. “Just let me change and then we’ll walk down there, okay?”

“Yay!” Penny danced in her spot before grabbing Winter’s hand and tugging her towards the bedroom. “Go change, Mom! Then we can go to the park!”

“There’s a fresh pot in the kitchen,” Weiss said quietly, expression apologetic. “Try to get  _ some  _ sleep today, okay?”

“We’ll do our best,” she replied before heading further inside the apartment, opting to trade her jumpsuit for jeans and a sweatshirt.  

Funny, she thought, for there was a time in her life where she couldn’t imagine what sort of person would wear such an ensemble out in public. Ah, the thoughts of a privileged, foolish child; she’d learned since then that a good pair of jeans could be worth more than gold in the right circumstances.

Stopping by the kitchen, she filled a thermos Weiss had gotten her as a gift with coffee and turned the machine off, not looking forward to the cold coffee awaiting her when she returned but not trusting the electrical wiring in the apartment too much, either. Better cold coffee than a fire.

“Okay, Penny, are you ready for the park?” She couldn’t quite summon the enthusiasm she should probably be exuding but her daughter seemed determined to make it up in spades.

“Yeah!” In her favorite little dress and boots, that green bow she loved so much in her hair, the little girl waited by the door with the biggest smile. “I’m park ready!”

“Then let’s go.”  

The complex itself had a… park, if one could call it that. More like a lawsuit waiting to happen, if someone asked Winter, and she’d always held the belief that her financial difficulties shouldn’t dictate everything about Penny’s life. So, they walked to the park a few miles away, because while she trusted the rust bucket she took to work not to break down on her, she didn’t trust it enough to bet her daughter’s life on it.

To her credit, Penny walked all the way there this time, though it did seem to drain some of her energy. Winter would likely have to carry her back but that was fine; she’d grown bigger and heavier the past four years, but she still paled in comparison to working at the warehouse, moving heavy, solid wood furniture.

“Alright, we’re here.” Winter swept her gaze across the park before looking down at Penny. “What are the rules?”

“Don’t go off with strangers,” she replied, reciting the list from memory. “If anyone bigger than me talks to me, come back to you. Don’t start a fight and don’t get into an argument, just walk away. And if anyone touches me, scream.”

“Good.” Picking out a park bench, Winter lead them over and sat down. “You want to play on the swings?” Her daughter nodded. “Okay. Mom just needs to rest for a few minutes. I’m just going to close my eyes briefly and then we’ll go to the swings. Does that sound amenable?”

“Yes, Mom.” Penny hopped up to sit beside her on the bench, knowing that it would be best to stay close while the woman rested her eyes. “I’ll be good.”

“I know you will, Sweetheart.” She bent over to give her little girl another kiss on her forehead before leaning back against the bench. Just a minute to close her eyes, that’s all she needed.

Just a… minute…

* * *

 

Penny smiled, watching the other kids run around the playground, laughing and screaming as they played. Some of them were about her size, so she could probably play with them, but she remained on the bench beside Mom.

Honestly, she loved coming to the park because she enjoyed the fresh air and the trees; playing with other kids and on the swing set was just a bonus. She understood that Mom spent most of her time working, so she tried not to complain when they stayed in the apartment all day, but she didn’t like it. Aunt Weiss’ apartment was nicer, and she could at least go out on the patio when Aunt Weiss or Aunt Blake was there, but she only went over there when Mom had to work a lot, so she didn’t exactly like that either. 

But this, she liked. Sitting with Mom in the park- it made her happy. Even if Mom had started snoring lightly, she’d walked all the way to park! She was tired and needed to sleep and Penny could still enjoy the breeze.

That made it a perfect day in her book.

* * *

 

Yang bit back a yawn, trying to keep her eyes open as she walked along the path, Zwei’s leash tugging lightly against her palm. Usually, she loved early mornings, but last night involved a few too many beers while watching the game and she’d paid dearly for it with a bit of a hangover. Some water and aspirin did wonders to remedy that but she still felt a bit lethargic. She’d missed her morning workout but Zwei hadn’t been so forgiving, demanding his walk regardless, and she’d learned her lesson when it came to withholding walks. Yang Xiao Long had only a few weaknesses- a well cooked steak, a pretty woman with fire in her soul, and puppy dog eyes being among them- and being confronted with them before noon usually shot her day to hell.  

“C'mon, Zwei,” she said, coaxing him away from watching ducks in the park’s pond. “Let’s finish one more lap and then head back for breakfast.”

They followed the path, stopping whenever kids ran up and asked to pet the corgi- who absolutely loved the attention, by the by, until they rounded the playground.

Then, Yang had to stop, a sight she found all too familiar causing her expression to pinch as a frown claimed her lips. A woman with white hair pulled into a bun that had started falling out slumped on a bench, apparently asleep while a little girl sat beside her, remaining calm and quiet while watching the other children play. A worn out parent with a child growing up far too quickly- it made her heart ache to see it, and she lead Zwei over after plastering on a gentle smile.

“Hey there,” she said, trying to keep her voice soft while kneeling in front of the bench. “Is that your mom?” The little girl said nothing but nodded her head, obviously wary about interacting with a stranger. “Are you keeping an eye on her while she sleeps?” Again, a nod. “Okay. I’m sure your mom warned you against strangers, yeah? Well, I’m not gonna ask you to do anything. I’m just gonna switch places with you.” Slowly, she moved to the far edge of the bench and tied Zwei’s leash to it, giving him enough room to wander around. “Why don’t you play with Zwei for a bit? I’ll keep an eye on your mom and let her sleep. Promise. We’ll all be right here when she wakes up.”

She tread a very thin line here. On the one hand, Yang was talking to a very young child while her parent slept, and she really wouldn’t blame anyone for jumping to the wrong conclusion. On the other hand… she was that kid, once. The one looking after her parent who was trying so hard to provide for her and her sister, not going to play so she could do chores, not hanging out with friends because someone had to put dinner on the table.

And if she could give another kid the chance to  _ be  _ a kid, it was worth the risk.

“We’ll stay here?” The little girl remained suspicious, though she obviously shared Yang’s weakness to Zwei’s need for attention.

“We won’t leave this bench.” She offered up her pinky, thinking it would be a universal sign that she meant what she’d said. However, the girl just stared at her, uncomprehending. “I promise.”

“Okay.” She jumped down and went to the end of the bench, petting Zwei, while Yang took her seat beside the sleeping woman. “Good doggie.”

Yang smiled, glad that the little girl seemed rather happy playing with the corgi. He might be getting a bit old but Zwei had certainly learned the best methods to cheer up kids with entirely too many responsibilities.

With a sigh, she pulled out her scroll, prepared to whittle the time away with a game, but caught movement out of the corner of her eye. The woman had started leaning forward, slumber robbing her of the ability to sit up straight, and she ran the risk of falling face first off the bench. Carefully, Yang wrapped an arm around the woman’s shoulders, trying to stabilize her, but found that- completely unconsciously- her charge turned into her, leaning onto her and effectively using her as a body pillow and snuggling into her shoulder until she felt comfortable.  

Immediately, Yang’s cheeks became red, because she went straight from being in a potentially- and an understandably- bad situation to an  _ even worse one _ . If the woman woke up and kicked her ass, she wouldn’t be able to blame her. But… she was still asleep and had to be pretty damn tired to not even wake after all  _ that _ .

“I have one helluvan ass whoopin’ waiting for me when she wakes up,” she said, curling an arm around the woman’s shoulders to keep her stable. At least now it looked like she  _ kinda  _ belonged there.

While the little girl played with Zwei, having him do what tricks he could considering the leash, Yang sat there and mused about how she’d explain to Ruby what held her up. Sure, her sister might be a little annoyed being left to run the shop herself, but she’d probably be more worried than anything.  Plus, she had that engine she still needed to rebuild for one of their long standing customers, but he’d probably understand. Especially if she spun the story to make it sound like she’d tried hitting on some lady in the park and got hit back, literally. He’d get a kick out of laughing at her.

Idly, she started constructing her explanation, trying to make it sound less creepy and failing miserably. Perhaps the only way she could adequately explain herself would be to start off with ‘I lost two moms growing up, I know what being a single parent feels like’ but that seemed like a _lot_ of baggage to dump on a very angry stranger.

“Stick?” The little girl pointed at one just a ways off, too far for Zwei to reach, before walking over to pick it up. 

Really, Yang’s best outcome would be not getting the cops called on her. Going to jail didn’t sound like fun today.

The girl returned, with the stick in hand, Zwei letting out a soft bark and eagerly awaiting it.

If she  _ did  _ get arrested, though, she hoped Ruby would be willing to bail her out. Not that her sister would turn her down, exactly, but she might let her spend a night just to drive the point home.

“Want it?” And then she raised it over her head, probably intending to use it as a treat after Zwei performed a trick. That wasn’t how he saw it, though, jumping for the stick once the leash allowed it. And  _ that  _ caused the little girl to shriek from delighted surprised as a dog just a little smaller than herself hit her chest.

And, okay, Yang kinda saw that coming. He didn’t jump often but he  _ loved  _ sticks or anything one could use for fetch. But she  _ didn’t  _ see the fall out coming, not at all.

Immediately, the woman snapped awake, throwing her arms out to propel her to her feet, one elbow landing solidly in the hollow of Yang’s throat. As she clutched at the injury and sputtered her breath, the woman looked around in a blind panic.

* * *

 

Winter felt her heart thundering in her chest, terrified for a moment that the sound that awoke her meant Penny had gotten hurt.  "Penny!“ When her gaze finally landed on her daughter- currently being used as a resting place by a black and white corgi- relief suffused her being as she effortlessly lifted the dog off her little girl. "Sweetheart, are you hurt? Show me- did the dog bite you?”

“I’m okay,” Penny replied, allowing herself to be lifted into Winter’s arms without protest, though she did point somewhere behind her mom’s shoulder. “But she isn’t.”

With a furrowed brow, Winter turned to find a very fit blonde on her hands and knees, coughing violently while clutching at her throat. “What happened to her?”

“You hit her, Mom.” Penny pointed at her throat. “Right here.”

She’d  _ thought  _ her arm had hit something much softer than the bench but had discarded the possibility, seeing as there rightly  _ shouldn’t  _ be anything soft to hit.

“And  _ what  _ were you doing that close to me in the first place?” She scowled, a harsh edge to her voice as she turned her body to shield Penny.

“You were sleeping with her, Mom.”

“I was  _ what _ ?”

“Wait!” The stranger croaked out, drawing a deep, rattling breath. “I can explain!”

“I sincerely doubt it.” Winter growled, resisting the urge to deliver a swift kick that would lay the interloper low. “If I ever see you again, you  _ won’t  _ be getting up.” With that, she turned, determined to leave the stranger and her mutt behind. “Penny, did she lay a hand on you?”

“No, Mom.” Penny vigorously shook her head. “She only asked to trade places with me.”

A chill ran down her spine at that, now confronted with the idea that the stranger had sat within arms’ reach of her for some reason- and the list of possibilities ran rather short in her mind. “Penny-”

“ZWEI, NO! HEEL!”

Suddenly, the corgi darted in front of her, a stick in his mouth making stepping around him treacherous, and she lowered her voice.

“Cover your ears.” As her daughter complied, she turned, the force of her piercing gaze bringing the stranger to a sudden stop. “You-”

“Just let me get my dog and I’ll be on my way, I swear.” She raised her hands in surrender and merely nodded towards the leash. “I don’t mean any trouble.”

“Listen to me, you pervert, I don’t know  _ what  _ you did-”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“-or  _ why _ -”

“Because I was your kid!”  _ That  _ brought a halt to Winter’s tirade, absolutely befuddled by such a bizarre statement. “I mean- look, my mom ran out when I was a baby and my sister’s mom died when I was seven. My dad worked two jobs to keep a roof over our head and he was always tired, and the one thing I wanted most was for the world to cut him a little slack. Let him just be a  _ dad  _ for more than a few hours before he was too exhausted to move.” She shrugged. “Honestly, I didn’t expect this to turn out well, so you don’t have to believe me. Just let me grab my dog and we’ll be out of your hair- there’s another park a few miles up the road, we’ll go there from now on.”

“If I understand you correctly, you full well understood that you’d likely be deemed either a pervert or a deviant and decided to sit on a bench for- what time is it?”

“Uh, almost ten.”

“Almost-  _ what _ ?” Winter checked her own watch, shifting Penny slightly to do so, and confirmed that, yes, she’d been asleep on that bench for nearly two hours. “Two hours? You just sat there for two hours while I slept?”

“Yeah.” She scratched at the back of her neck idly. “You kinda snore, by the way. Don’t worry, it’s actually really cute.” Immediately, red flared in her cheeks. “That was inappropriate.”

“Highly.”

“My name’s Yang-”

“I don’t recall asking.” Winter sighed, looking at Penny when she felt a little tug on her hoodie. “What is it, Sweetheart?”

“Mom, you’re being mean.” Her daughter frowned, softly speaking the admonishment but meeting her eyes all the same. “She was nice.”

Now, she was somewhat trapped. If she didn’t at least apologize, it would set a bad example, because every piece of evidence pointed to the idea that this Yang character had indeed taken time out of her day to give her some much needed rest and watch over Penny. It would be different if the woman had crossed a boundary, had taken any action with which she could object, but so far it looked like she’d asked nothing but a chance to help. At the same time, she remained suspicious, refusing to take any chances.

So, what was she to do?

“Are you hungry?” She waited until Penny nodded before summoning her most civil tone. “Yang, was it?”

“Yeah?”  

“Have you eaten breakfast yet?”

“Nah, I… kinda got a late start to the day.”

Setting her daughter down, she took the little girl’s hand. “Would you like to join us for breakfast, then? As a… show of my gratitude.”

“Uh, yeah, sure.” Yang nodded, finally coming close enough to grab her dog’s leash. “But, um, I should probably take my dog home, since most places-”

“There’s a cafe with an outdoor patio around the corner.” Winter left out the part where it was far too expensive for her budget but swallowed down those concerns. She’d just have to put off getting a new pair of work boots a little longer. “It’s our treat.”

Something akin to worry flashed across lilac eyes but she smiled all the same. “Well, can’t turn down an offer like that.”

Keeping her daughter close, Winter started towards the cafe while Yang fell into step beside her, and from the corner of her eye she registered that this strange and apparent Good Samaritan could probably bench press her with ease. That worried her- if she wanted something, she could likely take it, and while Winter had strength of her own and the desire to protect Penny to fuel her, it would’ve done her no good while she slept- but, were the circumstances different, it would be… interesting for another reason.

Shaking her head, she put those thoughts to the back of her mind. After she fulfilled the social obligation of repaying the woman’s kindness, they’d never cross paths again.

“Mom?” Penny bit her lip briefly before looking up. “Can we swing on the way back?”

“Of course, Sweetheart.”

As much as she hated to admit it, those two hours had provided her with ample energy, even if her backside felt a touch sore.

* * *

 

Yang finished off the last of her milk, wiping her lip with the back of her hand. Surreptitiously, she looked over to see that both Winter and Penny- whom she’d been properly introduced to on the walk over- were very politely demolishing the extra food she’d ordered.

The moment they’d been handed the menus, she’d caught Winter’s expression, the wince of 'how am I going to pay for that’ covered only by resolve, but the fact that both of them had ordered water to drink and the cheapest options on the menu told all Yang needed to know. So, she’d ordered a full sized breakfast and then a few side orders, encouraging the woman and her daughter to try them, since she’d already ordered it. All told, they’d probably worked through thirty lien of food, but they’d be full and happy after this, and that’s what mattered to Yang. Ever since she learned how to operate the stove, making sure everyone ate had been her responsibility, and some habits were hard to break.

“Hey, can you watch Zwei for a minute?” She pushed her chair back from the table. “I just need to run to the restroom.”

“Of course,” Winter replied, pouring more OJ for Penny, since she’d ordered a carafe.

Heading inside, Yang went straight for the server station where their waiter stood. “Excuse me, can I settle up our bill when you get a second?”

“I can bring it to your table-”

“Actually, I don’t want my friend knowing I paid for the whole meal quite yet.” She laughed, offering a shrug. “She gets kinda funny about it. Oh, and can I add a few to-go orders, too?”

“Of course.”

As the waiter set about ringing up the thing Yang had noticed the two really liked, her mind wandered over the conversation. It started stilted and precise, with Winter obviously not trusting her, so it fell to her to try and make the air a bit less awkward. She talked about her job, her sister, the game last night, Zwei- any topic that came to mind, answering the questions Penny posed when they came.

By degrees, Winter relaxed, mentioning a sister of her own vaguely, until they both struck on a mutual topic of interest- apparently, the woman had served in the Atlas military before moving to Vale, and Yang had always admired their uniforms and technology.

Once she warmed up, Winter was actually fun to talk to, a bit biting in her wit but she’d gotten Yang to laugh a few times, and Penny was absolutely adorable with how excited she got.  

After handing over her lien- and a sizable tip- Yang went back outside with an apologetic smile. “Hey, I hate to eat and run, but I should probably get to work.”

“I understand.” Winter gave a tight smile of her own, likely dreading the tab. “Take care, Yang.”

“You, too.” She knelt down beside Penny’s chair. “And you keep being good for your mom, alright?”

“Okay!” She smiled wide, looking down at the corgi. “And be good Zwei!”

He barked in response, obviously not happy about being separated from the little girl but following Yang all the same.

It bummed her out, just a bit, that she couldn’t rightly ask for Winter’s number. Considering the circumstances, it’d probably look bad, and she’d rather not sour the whole experience by overstepping again.

But maybe their paths would cross sometime down the road.

* * *

 

Winter tried to settle the unease in her gut as she waited for the waiter to return. She couldn’t imagine the bill awaiting her and the part of her that wanted to be annoyed by it couldn’t quite talk over the satisfaction in her belly. It had been  _ months  _ since she’d had thick cut bacon and Vacuon sausages, maybe even years now that she thought about it, and she likely wouldn’t eat like that for a while yet.

“Mom?” Penny pushed around the last bit of her pancakes with a fork. “Is Yang still a stranger?”

Her lips pressed into a thin line. “If you see her again, you can talk to her, but she’s not like your Aunts. I have to be there or another adult you know, understood?”

“Yes, Mom.” That seemed to make her happy, returning to her plate to finish the pancake.

Some nights, Winter went without food herself to ensure her daughter could eat, so it made her smile to see that her appetite grew with her. It worried her, too, but for now, she could simply enjoy it. “Are you sure you still want to go to the swings?” Penny nodded. “Very well. As soon as I pay-”

“Here you go, Ma'am.” The waiter cheerily dropped off two bags filled with to-go boxes. “Enjoy the rest of your day!”

“Wait, I haven’t paid-”

“Oh, your friend took care of the tab.”

Winter sat there for a moment, dumbstruck, before peeking into the bags. One had various breakfast pastries while the other had little bottles of milk and orange juice.

“Sweetheart,” she said, looking over at Penny. “If you  _ ever  _ see Yang again, thank her. And then make sure she stays put so  _ I _ can talk to her.”

“Yes, Mom.”

If she ever found that woman again, she’d express her gratitude as well, and  _ then  _ she’d give her an earful for not sticking around to take the credit.

* * *

 

Yang ducked into the shop, cringing at the line of cars sitting in the parking lot. Apparently, quite a few people were in need of their automobile expertise and she’d just barely shown up. Ruby would  _ not  _ be happy about this.

“Sorry!” She called out the moment she saw a flash of red coming around the front of a minivan. “I have a good excuse!”

“You better!” Her brows pinched together, hands on her hips as oil stained her coveralls. “If it wasn’t for Blake smoothing things over, we’d have  _ a lot _ of unhappy customers!”

“Oh, Yang finally showed up?” The Faunus appeared from somewhere in the back, carrying a box with spare parts. “Where have you been?”

“Look, give me fifteen minutes to tell this story, and we’ll knock out everything.” She took off her jacket and hung it up on a hook, leaving her just in her own yellow coveralls. “You’re not going to believe this.”

And thus, she began her tale, noting the curious expression on Blake’s face but doing her best to expedite the series of events.

“You’re right; I don’t believe it.” Ruby shook her head and laughed. “ _ How  _ did you not get arrested?”

“Maidens’ grace?” A shrug. “Honestly, it’s a shame we didn’t meet some other way. She was really nice, once we got past the awkwardness, and her kid’s adorable.”

The Faunus tilted her head. “Are you going to try running into her again?”  

“Nah.” She laughed. “She probably doesn’t wanna see me again. I’ll just head off to another park for Zwei’s walks. It’s no big deal.” Slipping on her gloves, she turned to start in the first oil change of the day, certain she could knock out three simultaneously if she balanced things right, and found Blake just… looking at her. “What?”

“Nothing.” She shook her head. “Nothing at all.”

Then, she walked off, and Yang just shrugged and got to work. Whatever was on the Faunus’ mind would come out at some point.


	2. Calculated Risk

Winter cursed under her breath as she got out of her car, reaching down to pull on the hood tab to pop it open. By the smell of it, she could tell she’d gone far too long without an oil change, but it wasn’t until she yanked- using all her body weight and strength- her dipstick out to find it bone dry that she realized her understatement.  _That_  didn’t bode well at all; at least she’d made it back home before anything  _too_ detrimental happened.

Getting it started that evening, however…

Dragging a hand down her face, she sighed heavily, the weight of everything sitting on her shoulders almost crushing and exhausting her purely through the circumstances alone. She didn’t have the luxury of wallowing in the frustration of too many bills and not enough money, though; her daughter was waiting. Summoning her focus, she marched up to her apartment, closing the door behind her softly. Her sister had some sort of early meeting today, meaning her girlfriend would be looking after Penny until she arrived and the slam of a door could be painful to her sensitive hearing.

Of course, she could never be silent enough to escape the notice of her daughter, though.

“Mom!”

“There’s my angel,” she said, a smile on her lips as she knelt down and gathered up her daughter in her arms, pressing a kiss to the top of Penny’s head. “Were you good for Aunt Blake?”

“Uh huh!” Little arms wrapped around her neck, giving her a fierce hug before Penny began to squirm, apparently ready to return to the ground. “Right, Aunt Blake? I was real good!”

“You absolutely were,” she said, coming out of the kitchen as the smell of freshly brewed coffee began to waft through the apartment. The Faunus had already changed into her work uniform, a simple black coverall with a white overall for her name on the right side of her chest. While she didn’t do any actual automotive work, the uniform seemed mandatory even for one who worked the counter. “Now go finish your breakfast.”

“Okay!” 

Scampering back to the dining room, they both kept pleasant expressions on their faces until she’d disappeared. However, once she’d gone, Winter leaned back against the door and stared down at her feet. “Thank you, Blake. I appreciate your help.”

“It’s no trouble, really.” Even though the words remained unsaid, she could hear the breath the Faunus took in preparation before letting it go. 

When she’d moved to Vale, Winter made it expressly clear that she didn’t want her decisions to impact Weiss in any way, despite her sister’s insistence that they could move in together. Weiss had her own life and while her help was invaluable, she’d imposed enough and would never be able to repay it; she’d given up and forsaken plenty in her life, but she still had her pride. Raising Penny herself was  _her_  decision and she wouldn’t put her sister in a position where she didn’t have a choice whether or not to help.

“You should probably get to work.” Winter winced, not wanting to ask but also highly aware of her reality. “Also, would it be possible for you to give me a ride to work tonight? I’m… not sure if my car will start.”

“What’s wrong with it?” Blake tilted her head, feline ears canted forward a moment before her expression sharpened. “I understand you prefer handling problems yourself but I literally work for an auto shop. If there’s something wrong with your car, I’m sure my bosses will let you use my employee discount.”

Pushing off the door, she moved towards the dining room- really, just a nook that fed into both the kitchen and living room, hardly big enough for the four person table that she owned, with its scratched table top and wobbly legs- and checked on Penny, who was doing very well in finishing off her cereal. She’d even drank all of her milk. That brought a small smile to her lips before she returned her attention to Blake and lowered her voice.

“There’s no oil left in the line; it’s all burned up. I’ll need  _at least_  five quarts and a new filter. But it’s not that expensive and I’ll go to the store while we’re out for our walk.”

“When are you going to give your car an oil change yourself, Winter?” Blake set her hands on her hips, a stance she’d adopted from Weiss for exactly this circumstance, it seemed. “I know you won’t accept money from us, we’ve both fought that battle with you already, but this is about your  _time._ You hardly get four hours of sleep; are you going to sacrifice  _even more_ when there’s a perfectly logical solution staring you in the face?”

“And what is that?” Frustration colored her tone, conscious effort necessary to keep from raising her voice and alerting Penny to the argument. “I’ll not have you deceive your employers by saying it’s  _your_  car needing the oil change.”

“Fine, then let me go into work and tell them the situation. If they agree, you can meet me at the shop.” Crossing her arms over her chest, the Faunus’ ears twitched, a clear sign she was doing her best to hold in her frustration as well. “They’ll probably knock it out before we close up or first thing in the morning; either way, I’ll be your ride to and from work today and tomorrow. Weiss was going to watch Penny tonight anyway, so there’s nothing to worry about there.”

Part of her wanted to object on principle. So much of Weiss’ and Blake’s lives were dictated by her current financial position; it wasn’t fair to either of them but they refused to simply let her struggle in silence. “Ask. If your boss says no-”

“I’ll still give you a ride and we can pick up the oil on the way back in the morning,” the Faunus said, raising her hands in a placating gesture. “I’m not trying to force your hand, Winter, but you have to be reasonable. There’s no reason to force yourself into a bad position- or an even worse one.”

With a sigh, she nodded, heading into the kitchen by way of the dining room so she could press a kiss to Penny’s head in passing, smiling at her daughter while making herself a cup of coffee. Hopefully, they wouldn’t spend too much time expending a lot of energy today. “Say bye to Aunt Blake.”

“Bye bye Aunt Blake!” She jumped down from her chair, quickly running over for a goodbye hug which Blake returned.

“I’ll see you later, Penny.” Then, the Faunus collected up her bag and left, closing the door behind her for Winter to lock.

“Mom?”

“Yes?”

“Can we draw today?”

Winter chuckled. “Of course we can, Sweetheart.” 

She took a sip of her coffee, silently sighing in relief. In the back of her mind, she noted that all the drawing and coloring they’d been doing would mean she’d need to stop by the store and get Penny more crayons. 

Ultimately, she just needed to sit down and reexamine her budget. Living paycheck to paycheck frustrated her greatly, of course, but that provided no excuse for failing to provide for her daughter.

* * *

Yang hit the buttons to open the garage doors while finishing off the last of her morning protein shake. They still had about an hour before the front office opened but she’d woken up a bit earlier than normal and opted to head into work so she could finish up that engine rebuild from the night before. Aside from the alternator they were waiting on, that meant they had a pretty clear schedule for the day, a string of simple fixes over the past few days giving them a bit of breathing room. On the one hand, a lot of small problems were quick to fix and quick to get paid for, but on the other, the bigger projects consumed more time but usually came with a higher price tag.

Tilting her head to either side to stretch out the muscles, she ducked into the garage office, setting down her protein shaker on her desk. Ruby would probably remind her to clean it up at some point, invoices littered across the top of it just below the picture frames she kept. A few fast food bags lay crumpled and shoved onto one corner because they’d forgotten to take out the trash two weeks in a row. She’d make sure to get it tonight.

By the time she made it back out to the garage, pulling her gloves on and setting her safety glasses in place across the bridge of her nose, Yang found she wasn’t the only one in the shop, and she had to raise a brow. “Blake?  You’re in early; I thought you were helping your sister-in-law.”

The Faunus offered a small smile and a shrug, ignoring the slight misnomer. “Well, I’d planned on having breakfast with my girlfriend before coming into work but… I kinda have a favor to ask and didn’t think it would be a good idea to be late.”

“What kinda favor?” Heading over to her workbench, she pulled out her tools from the nearby box and got to work on the engine rebuild.

“My girlfriend’s sister, she needs an oil change, bad.”

“How bad?”

“Bone dry.”

Immediately she winced, not looking forward to what sort of damage might’ve been done to the engine. “Yeesh. Yeah, tell her to bring it by, we’ll knock it out today. Not much of a favor.”

“Well, it might have to be tomorrow morning; she works the night shift and I’m going to be her ride to and from work.” Although she had her work to focus on, Yang could hear Blake moving around and preparing the auto shop to open for the day. “ _That_  is where the favor part comes in.”

“Helping a friend isn’t a favor; it’s being a friend.” Chuckling, she paused and made a motion with her hand. “Look, do what you need to do and the oil change is on the house, no worries.”

“That’s another thing; I can almost  _promise_  she’ll insist she pays something.”

“Well, it’s my shop, my rules, so she ain’t paying a dime.” Yang paused. “Or she’ll pay  _one_ dime, if she insists.”

“Can you fight that fight without getting me in trouble? It’s  _still_  my girlfriend’s sister we’re talking about.”

“Leave it to me, Blakey.” Doing the math in her head, she figured even a bone dry engine wouldn’t cause  _too_  much trouble. “Hell, if you wanna bring her in earlier, we don’t have that much going on. Probably have it done before she has to leave for work.”

“I’ll offer but that depends on whether or not Weiss is out of her meeting. She’s… got a busy day today.”

“That’s fine, just let me know; I’ll take care of it myself, okay?”

“You got it.”

Shaking her head, Yang got back to work, absently greeting her sister when Ruby came in a bit later. She got completely lost in the project as time passed and hardly registered Zwei coming to lay at her feet, having spent the night with her sister. Although she took the brunt of his care, they agreed to share him between their respective apartments, both wanting their independence after working side-by-side all day but also not willing to give up their dog.

Unsurprisingly, he never complained.

“Hey, Rubes?” She called out when she reached a stopping point.

“Yeah?”

Looking over her shoulder, she flashed a smile. “Remind me to give Blake hell later. It’s been two years; she needs to marry that girlfriend of hers.”

Her sister laughed. “Will do!”

* * *

Penny bent over the little desk Mom got her, working to furiously finish the drawing she’d started before Mom put them both down for a nap. Even though she should’ve probably slept, she didn’t feel tired, so she snuck out of bed earlier to work on her drawing a little more. Mom probably wouldn’t like that if she knew; naps were so Mom could sleep without worrying about what she was doing, but Penny always got back into bed before Mom woke up or one of her Aunts arrived. Then, she’d pretend to wake up while Mom got ready for work. One day, Mom would let her stay awake while she slept, but until then, Mom needed to sleep as much as she could, regardless if  _she_  felt tired. As long as Mom didn’t wake up to find her out of bed, she wouldn’t get in trouble.

The doorbell rang and Mom went to answer it, meaning she probably didn’t have much time left. She  _really_  wanted to finish this one before Mom went to work.

She could hear Aunt Weiss’ voice, which was weird because usually she wouldn’t be here this early, unless they were having dinner together. Oh, maybe this was one of those special occasions where Aunt Blake’s work let her go home early and she was on her way!

“Sweetheart?” Mom came back into the room, wearing her work clothes and kneeling down. “Mom has to go to work early today.”

That was exactly the  _opposite_  of what she’d hoped, turning to look up with pleading eyes. “But Mom!”

She felt bad immediately, seeing the way Mom’s expression saddened as she coaxed Penny into a tight hug.

“I’m sorry, Sweetheart, but I have to drop my car off so it can get fixed. That means I have to leave early and I’ll be home late, but Aunt Weiss will watch over you, okay?” A kiss pressed against the side of her head and she tried not to cry. She didn’t like when Mom had to work  _more_ ; she worked so much already. “Be good for Aunt Weiss.”

“I will.” Mom started to stand up but paused, obviously looking at the drawing. “It’s not done yet.”

“Can you tell me what is it?” Mom had that look in her eyes, the one that said she was a little bit worried but not in a way she’d be willing to talk about- at least not to her. Aunt Weiss would probably ask about it, though.

“It’s the house we’re going to get,” she said, pointing out the features proudly. “Here’s your room, and here’s my room, and Aunt Weiss and Aunt Blake have their own house over here, and we’re happy.”

Mom pointed to one of the other features. “What about here?”

“That’s the doghouse, ‘cause we’re going to have a dog one day, right Mom?” She’d seen a lot of dogs- people would walk them outside all the time- but she wasn’t allowed to get close. The only one she’d ever gotten to play with was Zwei, Yang’s nice dog, so she colored the dog house like that, black and white.

“One day. A big yard and a dog to play with, I promise.” Mom smiled and pressed another kiss to her forehead. “It’s a beautiful drawing; make sure you put it up on the fridge when it’s finished, okay?” 

“Okay. I love you, Mom.”

“I love you too, Sweetheart. Now, be good tonight and I’ll see you in the morning.” Standing up and wincing slightly, Mom left the room.

“Yes, Mom,” she replied, trying not to sound as sad as she felt. As much as she hoped they could have a house of their own one day, what she  _really_  wanted was her and Mom being able to stay home for a day. No work, no meetings, no waiting for someone to show up and ask her questions, just her and Mom.

And  _maybe_  a dog.

“Penny?” She looked up, trying to hide her frown away as her Aunt came into the room. However, Aunt Weiss always seemed to know when she was sad. “Come here. It’s okay.” Getting up from her desk, she went over and gave her Aunt a hug, feeling her fingers card through her hair soothingly. “You know Mom wishes she could be home more, right? She doesn’t  _want_  to leave you.”

“I know.” Penny hugged her Aunt even tighter.

Then, Aunt Weiss picked her up, rocking her gently while leaving the bedroom. “You know, when I was small, your Mom used to do this for me. We’ll curl up on the couch, watch cartoons, and in the morning, we’ll see about going for ice cream, the three of us.”

“Mom’s going to be tired, though.”

“Not if we meet her at the ice cream shop. Maybe Aunt Blake can join us, too.”

That brightened her mood slightly- at least enough that Aunt Weiss thought she was in favor of the plan. She still hoped one day Mom wouldn’t have to work but expected it to be a while yet before that dream could come true.

* * *

Yang cursed under her breath, leaning back from the engine and stretching her back. She’d just spent the better part of the past hour getting the rebuilt engine set back in place and hooking everything up properly and figured it’d be a good time for a break. Not only would her back thank her but she’d heard the jingle on the front door a few times, which meant they probably had a car or two waiting for something simple; with Blake handling the front office, Ruby had to do most of the parts running, which meant no one else was working on cars. Usually, they weren’t busy enough for it to be a problem, but business had picked up recently and she’d considered hiring a dedicated parts runner to keep up.

Grabbing the rag sticking out of her pocket, she started wiping her hands while striding towards the front office, whistling along to some pop song on the radio. All in all, a pretty good day; she’d knocked out a few inspections, oil changes, a tire rotation, installed a new muffler for a long time customer- while biting back the comment about how mufflers are supposed to make  _less_ noise, not that he intended for it of course- and almost had the engine rebuild done. In between running around, Ruby knocked out a few simple maintenance tickets, too. 

All in all, they were looking pretty good.

“Oh, hey, Rubes,” she said, pushing into the front office and casting a glance around. “Didn’t know you were- shit!”

Immediately, she dove behind the counter, flat on the ground, and crawled into the corner like she had barbed wire above her, drawing more than a curious glance from her sister.

“Yang, what are you  _doing_?”

“Winter’s out there!”

“Who?”

“You remember, that lady with the kid I met in the park a few weeks ago? Her name was Winter- didn’t I tell you that?”

“No, actually, you didn’t, and you didn’t describe her beyond ‘really pretty and kinda terrifying when pissed’ which was all that seemed important at the time.” Ruby looked through the glass windows at the front of their shop. “And all I see are Blake and her girlfriend’s sister. At least, that’s who I assume is with her; Blake asked to go out to talk to her when she pulled up.”

“She hasn’t come in yet?”

“I don’t thinks so? I just got back from picking up that spoiler we ordered.” Silver eyes flicked up. “They’re both coming inside.”

“I’m not here!” Yang immediately tried to push herself up under the counter as best she could. She was going to chew Blake’s ears off after this; there’s  _no way_  the Faunus didn’t know who Yang was talking about, and suddenly that  _look_  she received afterwards made so much more sense, but  _no_ , of course she couldn’t give Yang a heads up, damnit.

Of course, there existed the possibility that, maybe, Winter  _wanted_  their paths to cross again, but she’d come to know her mischievous friend rather well by now and firmly believed Blake was up to no good.

“Hi, Blake!” Ruby waved, smiling bright as ever. “Is this the friend who needed the oil change?”

“Yeah, this is Weiss’ sister, Winter. Winter, this is Ruby, one of my bosses.” Oh, yeah, there was  _definitely_  a thread of ‘I know exactly what I’m doing’ in her voice.

“Nice to meet you,” the woman said, her voice sounding tight. “Thank you for giving Blake the time off to help me with this.”

“Oh, it’s no trouble at all!” Her sister leaned, not doing a good job of hiding her wince. “Is, uh, is that your car?”

“Yes. I’m aware it’s in need of maintenance but all I can afford right now is an oil change. Speaking of, what’s the projected cost for the oil and filter replacement?”

“Well, we do it at cost for employees, but Ya-”

“Would twenty suffice?” Before either employee could interject, she continued. “I’m not an employee; while I can accept a discount, I’ll not abuse your generosity.”

Yang cringed, already able to picture just how livid the woman must’ve been when the waitress brought her the bags of to-go food and told her the bill was already paid. This did  _not_ bode well.

“Uh, alright, we’ll, uh, settle you up tomorrow. We’ve got a spot, so it should be ready for pick up first thing.” Ruby accepted the keys and filled out a work order, asking a few more questions just for clarification purposes. “Hey, by the way, do you remember-” Alarm bells went off in her head as her hand shot out, lightly knocking against her sister’s ankle- enough to get her attention but not to leave a bruise, at least. “Ah! Uh, sorry, knee’s been bothering me recently. Do you remember what kind of oil you use? Synthetic or no?”

“Whichever’s cheapest.”

“Uh, right. Okay! And Blake’s taking you to work now, right?”

“Yeah, should be thirty minutes, depending on traffic,” Blake said. “Ready to go?”

“Of course.” Winter seemed to turn away from the counter. “Thank you again for this.”

“Oh, it’s no problem! And, Blake, mind looking over this order real quick? You might be able to grab the part on the way back.”

“Sure. I’ll meet you at the car.” The moment the door jingled, Yang started crawling her way out from under the counter but found herself looking up at one very smugly curious Faunus, who herself was leaning over to look down at her. “Really? You hid down there the whole time?”

“If  _someone_  had given a little warning, I would’ve hid in the back office!” Grumbling, she knelt behind the counter, not wanting to risk standing up quite yet. “What’s the idea, Blake? You  _know_ she said she didn’t want to see me again.”

“From her version of the story, she definitely  _didn’t_  say that;  _you_  offered it.” One brow rose before she leaned back, no longer laying across the countertop. “Anyway, I would’ve told you but you made it seem like you were going to forget the whole thing happened, so who am I to change your mind?”

“Bringing her here without any warning kinda says you’ve got an answer to that.” Yang scowled, crossing her arms over her chest. “Seriously, what gives?”

“Aside from the fact you two would actually make pretty good friends if you allowed it? Simple: my girlfriend’s sister needed an oil change and I work at an auto shop.” She shrugged. “How you two decide to handle the ‘it’s a small world’ thing is not my prerogative.” Her lips curled into a small smile. “Speaking of which, I have to get her to work now. Whether or not you ever talk to her, that’s on you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind!”

Although she’d remained silent on the whole situation thus far, something obviously bothered Ruby, something she wouldn’t let go without remarking upon. “Uh, just… real quick, she doesn’t… let her daughter ride-”

“Oh, no, no one but Winter gets in that thing. It’s purely to get her to work and back; everywhere else, she walks.”

Yang raised a brow at her sister’s obvious relief, the door’s chime signalling Blake’s departure. “Let me know when they pull away.”

“Three, two, one- and you’re clear.”

Getting to her feet, she looked towards the parking lot prepared to ask which one belonged to Winter. However, given the options, she really didn’t  _have_  to ask. “What the fuck.”

“I’ve… seen worse.”

“Yeah, in a junkyard about to be scrapped.” She shook her head. “And even  _then_ , I’ve seen better.”

The body had large spots absolutely eaten away by rust. The doors and quarter panels were dented all to hell and the windshield had a crack all the way across it. Even at a distance, she could tell the rims were damaged and probably rusted as well, not to mention the absent grill. 

“Maybe it doesn’t look so bad under the hood?”

“I doubt that.” Snatching the keys, she went outside with her sister trailing a step or two behind. Popping the hood, both of them groaned. The timing belt looked like it was seconds away from snapping, what looked to be some manner of corrosion leaked from the battery, the whole thing smelled like burnt oil and probably coolant, and she could see where an improper attachment on the belt was rubbing what looked to be the radiator hose raw. “Holy shit.”

“She  _drives_  this?” Her sister ran a hand through her hair, the other perching on her shoulder. “This is- this is a rolling death trap.”

“Wait, you smell that?” Inhaling deeply, she got down on her knees and looked beneath the vehicle, cringing immediately. “Damnit, there’s a gas leak. It’s small, but it’s there, probably a hole in the line.” Sitting back on her heels, she drug a hand down her face. “Ruby, we can’t let her drive this thing away with  _only_  an oil change.”

“Yang, think about this; we could lose our license doing work that wasn’t approved.” Her sister furrowed her brows, lips pressing into a thin line. “I mean, I’m all for it, absolutely, but we gotta be  _smart_  about this.”

“Right, you’re right. Lightly used parts, give ‘em a grunge look so they won’t look  _too_  out of place.” She leaned towards the side, looking at the tires. Absolutely  _no_  treads. “Think we could sneak on some new tires?”

“Part of me says ‘not any I’d feel comfortable with’ and the other part says ‘anything’s better than  _those_ ’.” Looking back at their shop, she sister started running everything through. “I might have an idea… but all this work-”

“Take my share to cover it; I’ve got a cushion,” she said, immediately banishing any considerations for the amount of lien they’d need to pull this off. “Whatever thought you’re having, run with it.”

“Let’s start copying down sizes; as soon as Blake gets back, I’m making a run, but I can make a few calls first.” A growl. “By the time I get back, though…”

“I’ll handle it.” She looked up at Ruby. “I promised Blake I’d do the work myself. We’ll be ready to rock by sunup.” Then, a laugh. “Would be great if we had a parts runner though, huh?”

“We’ve got someone coming in tomorrow morning for interview,” her sister replied, silently acknowledging that didn’t help them in the slightest at present.

“Well, let’s start moving; I’ll get this pulled into the second bay.” She got to her feet, dusting off her hands. “I think I see something on the front axle I want to take a better look at.”

“Don’t go overboard, remember-”

“Hey, remember who you’re talking to here!”

“The lady our customer met in a park, who kinda sorta bullied her into taking a bunch of food home for free?” Ruby raised a brow. “This is the same woman you hid under the counter from, remember?”

Ah, that was a point. “… right. Sneaky and subtle.”

“Who knows.” A grin. “Maybe we can turn her into a repeat customer, do a little bit at a time.”

Yang wasn’t so sure about that- mainly because she didn’t want to spend random days hiding under the counter of her own shop. Plus, they might be able to buy some time and maybe avoid a catastrophic failure, but they weren’t miracle workers.

* * *

Winter winced, leaning down to rub at her knee briefly. During that last move, something knocked against it- either a cart or a furniture box she hadn’t seen- and would leave a sizable bruise come tomorrow, but she couldn’t concern herself with that at present. She still had another two hours before quitting time and several more large furniture boxes to move. They had about ten more on the truck they were busy unloading and hopes to get the next one started before the following shift came to relieve them.

“Schnee!”

Straightening, she plastered on an indifferent expression before turning to face the team’s supervisor. “Yes, Sir?”

“For the last time, this isn’t the damn military,” he said, sighing while looking over his clipboard. “And, I’m afraid I have some bad news. They’re coming down pretty hard on us about the overtime, so we’re going to have to put you on a full forty, but nothing over that.”

For a moment, her heart skipped a beat in her chest. “Sir, with respect-”

“Listen, I know, this isn’t ideal for anybody.” To his credit, he looked genuinely upset having to inform her, rubbing at the back of his neck subconsciously. “You’re one of the hardest workers we’ve got on payroll, and I know you’ve got your little girl to think about, but it is what it is.”

“I understand,” she replied, nodding stiffly before moving to rejoin her team, their short break already over. Without the overtime, she’d be even more hard pressed to find ways to make ends meet. Although she’d have more time, her only option seemed to be finding a secondary source of income, and hope it fell into a similar time slot. That, and she’d likely have to dip into what little she’d managed to save up over the past five years.

Briefly, Penny’s drawing from earlier flashed in her mind, and the weight of the world bearing down on her seemed even heavier than before.

Yet, she couldn’t allow it to own her. No matter the trials ahead, she’d chosen her path and refused to back down. After she finished her shift, she’d ask Blake to help her look around for some work, perhaps pick up a few applications on the way to get her car.

* * *

Yang downed her upteenth cup of coffee, starting to feel a strange buzzing sensation in her fingertips as the overindulgence in caffeine promised one  _hell_  of a crash in a few hours. She could worry about that later; right now, she had the last touches to put on Winter’s car.

After pulling it into the garage and giving it a thorough inspection, she’d nearly lost her mind. The fact the whole thing hadn’t fallen apart or suffered a severe mechanical failure defied her knowledge, seemingly held together by bubblegum and hopes. Compiling the parts list alone took the better part of an hour, during which she’d knocked out the other customers they’d gotten- nothing major, good busy work for her hands- and put everything else off to the following morning. Then, she took what parts they had and got to work, replacing what she could and pulling out everything that they  _needed_  to find, allowing Ruby to put together a list.

Replacing the engine- with a more functional one, even if it looked about as old- took the better part of the night and replacing the gas line gave her a headache but she’d gotten most of the work done. Looking under the hood, it looked almost as bad as when they first popped it, but a trained eye could see the obvious improvements. Add to that a new oil filter and all she really had left was replacing all the fluids and trying to crank it. She had  _one shot_  to make this work; with sunrise on the horizon, she didn’t have an abundance of time for trouble shooting.

“Come on, baby,” she said, setting aside the coffee cup and wiping at the sweat on her face. “Let’s hear you roar.”

Grabbing the oil and a jug of coolant, she went about the final step with the constant thought that, as long as they didn’t get caught, they’d done some great work.

If they got caught, though, it might be her license on the line- she’d been sure to usher Blake and Ruby out of the garage without explaining further, just for plausible deniability purposes. As much as she hated playing the legal game, she wasn’t a fool.

Well, at least, not by  _her_  estimations.

* * *

On the way to the auto shop, Winter tried to focus on the positive side of things. Soon, she’d be back home, and Penny would greet her like she was the most important person in the world, and all the bad things would just… slide away.

“I’m sure I can ask for a day off soon, if you need some time-”

“Thank you, Blake, but this is already an imposition,” she said, biting back the anger her wounded pride sparked. “I’ll fill out the applications today and drop them tonight on my way into work. I’ll… find something.”

“Have you considered trying for something at the bank or-”

“I’m afraid I don’t have the luxury of looking for a job I  _want_. Right now, I need a job as desperately as someone needs an employee.” Two fingers rubbed at her temple. “I just need to find that connection.”

“If you say so,” Blake replied, ceding the argument quickly. 

She felt a touch of remorse- the Faunus only ever tried to help, much like her sister- but neither could fix her many problems. While she took their suggestions to heart, the years spent in Vale looking for  _any_  manner of job that could pay her bills and provide her more time with Penny taught her that it was an endeavor that required more energy and time than she typically possessed. However, she  _would_  try again, on the off chance something had opened up.

Pulling up to the auto shop, she spotted her car sitting in the lot, in a different space than she’d parked it. Hopefully, that meant the work was completed and a quick payment meant she’d be well on her way home. If she had just a bit more luck, she might even get to spend another day drawing or watching cartoons.

Rubbing at her eyes, she entered the shop after Blake, once again finding the young woman she’d dealt with the day before. Idly, she wondered how many red undershirts a person could own, seeing as she definitely had on a slightly different shade than the day before; while the coveralls might be part of the shop’s uniform, the undershirt didn’t seem to be.

“Oh, hey Blake! And Winter!” Something about the woman’s smile seemed nervous as she retrieved a folder with the paperwork from the day before. “Long night?”

“You could say that.” Pulling out her wallet, she grabbed the twenty lien card she handed it over while accepting her keys back. “That’s what we agreed upon, correct?”

“Uh, well, I’d  _really_  rather charge you fifteen, if that’s okay.”

Summoning her willpower, she let out a short sigh. “Fine. Fifteen lien.”

“Great!”

“With a five lien tip.” She raised a brow. “That won’t be a problem, will it?”

“Uh, heh, no, I- I guess not.” Silver eyes looked away as she frowned- Ruby, that was her name. 

“Understand, I appreciate your… generosity.” Again, her pride tickled; a stubborn thing that refused to let her accept the help she obviously needed. At the same time, one could hardly blame her. “But I know this was a favor and I’ll not take advantage of that.”

“I get it.” Ruby smiled and shrugged. “Points for trying though, right?”

She gave a small smile in response. “Thank you again, both of you. I’ll see you later, Blake. I’ll be sure to give Weiss your love.”

Exiting the shop, Winter did her best to keep her mind engaged, not wanting exhaustion to make her careless on the drive home. The moment she turned over her car, however, she noticed something.

The air conditioner kicked on. She had to double check to be sure, blinking a few times and putting her hands over the vents. Neither the AC nor heat had worked since she’d gotten the damn thing. Why would it work now?

Getting out, she popped the hood and lifted it up, narrowing her eyes as she studied the components. She couldn’t be sure, but it all looked… different. A bit shinier, as if some parts were cleaned up, which made enough sense if someone spent a suitable time elbow deep in it… but it looked like more than that. She felt  _certain_  it didn’t look like this the morning before.

And then the obvious answer smacked her in the face.

Letting the hood fall shut, she turned around and marched back inside the auto shop, two sides warring within her mind. On the one hand, she’d been keenly aware her vehicle needed a fair amount of work and she  _was_  grateful the mechanic saw fit to do it. However, she couldn’t  _possibly_ afford it, and if Blake had tried slipping one past her, she wouldn’t be accused to taking advantage of someone’s kindness. They’d already done enough to help her.

The moment she pulled the door open- sharply, causing the chime to sound out- she noticed the Faunus’ earnest confusion with her return. “Winter? Something wrong?”

“Bring Ruby back here, now,” she said, setting her hands on the counter and curling them into fists. 

She wasn’t  _angry_ , per se- it wasn’t that she valued her pride above her sense. Winter simply understood that those who helped her put themselves at a disadvantage and had neither the strength nor the patience to deal with a stranger potentially setting up a debt without her knowing. She’d spent far too much of her life being put in that position, being tricked into feeling like she owed something to someone other than herself- her loyalty, her time, her energy, her very life. Reclaiming it was the first step to finding freedom and she’d not make those mistakes again lightly.

Without Blake having to do much of anything, she could see Ruby take note of her return and hurry across the garage, plastering on a smile that seemed a touch too wide to be sincere as she opened the door. “Oh, uh, something wrong?”

“How much work did you do on my car?”

“Well, we did the oil change and replaced the filter.”

“And what  _else_?” Her gaze flicked over to Blake, who suddenly stiffened and moved a bit away, as if absolving herself from whatever decisions her boss made. “I can tell a lot more work’s been done than I asked and I-”

Suddenly, she felt a small bit of pressure against her leg and looked down to find a dog swatting at her pants.

A very…  _familiar_  dog.

And suddenly, it all made sense.

“Hello, Zwei,” she said, reaching down to pet the dog’s head. Then, she rounded on Ruby. “Where is she?”

The woman looked like she might try to make an excuse for all of two seconds before sighing and hanging her head in defeat. “She’s in the garage office- but it wasn’t-”

Winter held up a finger, stopping all manner of excuses while stepping around the counter and heading into the garage. Finding the office didn’t pose too much of a problem, seeing as only one door seemed to lead to an area, and she opened it with every intention of getting to the bottom of the whole issue.

The words caught in her throat, however, when she found Yang- the same woman she’d met in the park a few weeks ago- slumped over the cluttered desk, soundly asleep and snoring softly. She had all manner of grease and oil on her face and arms, even some in her hair, and her coveralls were pulled down and tied off at her waist. The yellow tank top she wore clearly was clearly stained with drying sweat and dirty from work but it looked like Yang hardly had the energy to sit in the chair much less change, considering the cot a few feet away.

Then, blue eyes fell on the few photographs in frames. One was of a family, she assumed: mother with a soft, round face like Ruby’s and father with the same wild hair and wide grin as Yang, plus a little blonde girl and a baby swaddled in blankets, standing in front of a house out in the woods. Another of the same man but with younger versions of Yang and Ruby, their manner of dress clearly indicating the former had just graduated- either from high school or trade school, it was difficult to say. A third, the two sisters standing in front of the auto shop, their father nowhere to be seen.

_“Because I was your kid!”_

Silently, Winter stepped closer and, with all the care she could muster, picked Yang up from the chair. The woman hardly moved, obviously exhausted from her night of unexpected work, and that made it all the easier to lay her down on the cot and draw the thin, well worn blanket over her without rousing her from slumber.

They’d talked about it, briefly, during that morning, how Yang had grown up in a single parent household. She’d neglected to mention her father beyond that and never in the present tense. Winter hadn’t thought much of it until now.

Going over to the desk, she found a scrap of paper that seemed more or less unused and disposable and penned out a quick message, taking it with her as she returned to the front office, where both Ruby and Blake seemed nervous.

“She’s asleep,” Winter said as means of explanation, handing over the paper. “Give this to her when she awakens. And Blake?” Breathing in deeply, she let it out slowly. “Did you know?”

“I had a hunch,” the Faunus replied, crossing her arms over her chest. “Neither of you mentioned names and I didn’t clarify, but aside from the previous meeting, I didn’t know anything.”

“Did  _she_  know?”

“She, uh, hid under the counter when you walked in.” Ruby offered with a weak smile. “She…  _really_ thought you didn’t want to see her again.”

Reaching up, she rubbed at her temple. “Be sure you give her that. And thank you, for all the work done on my car. I know it needed some… serious repairs.” Her gaze snapped over to Blake. “ _Weiss_ will deal with you tonight.”

Winter turned, ready to head out of the shop without waiting for another word from either of them, but found herself nearly bumping into a redhead just an inch or two shorter than her. 

“Sorry!” Sparkling emerald eyes shone with sincerity as she stepped back. “I’m here for the interview.”

For a moment, her tired brain didn’t connect the dots, until she remembered her work uniform- a similar set of coveralls- closely mimicked that of the two employees and moved aside. “I believe she’s the one you want to talk to and… good luck.” She glanced back at the other two. “They take care of people here.”

Then, she left, intent only on getting home, seeing her daughter, and talking to her sister.

She didn’t plan on the Faunus getting in trouble, of course- obviously she’d kept the details vague for plausible deniability purposes- but she fully intended on having a serious conversation with Weiss about this. Penny would be willing to give them a bit of space to have that talk, hopefully, and they could discuss the whole situation. 

Because what bothered her the most about the whole ordeal was just… the warring sensations of constantly being in debt to Yang- this stranger she didn’t know beyond a few details- and the acknowledgement that the woman probably didn’t see it as such. A proper discussion to work out  _some_  manner of compensation would’ve been vastly preferable to driving away with so much unsaid but she wouldn’t interrupt much needed sleep for the purpose of mollifying her own pride.

Plus… she needed to see if her sister happened to have any sort of tips for making a home cooked meal.

* * *

Yang stretched her arms over her head, yawning while slipping out of the garage office. She’d need to thank Blake and Ruby; it must’ve been a chore moving her from the chair to the cot they kept for emergencies but her back appreciated it. Absently, she reached down to pat Zwei’s head while walking over to where her sister stood in front of a minivan, elbow deep in changing the timing belt.

“Hey, Rubes,” she said, chuckling slightly as her sister jumped. “Easy, killer. Just wanted to say thanks for moving me; that chair is  _not_  comfortable for sleeping.”

“Oh! Uh. So. I have some news. About that, specifically.” She raised a brow, confused by Ruby’s sudden nervousness. “ _I_  didn’t move you.”

“Blake-”

“Nope.”

“Then, who-”

“Winter did.” Fishing into one of her pockets, she pulled out a piece of paper even as the bottom dropped out of Yang’s stomach. “She noticed we did a bit more work on her car, came inside to interrogate me about it, recognized Zwei, and… went into the garage office. When she came back, she told me to give you this when you woke up.”

Hesitantly, she took the paper in her hands and read the tiny, neat cursive.

_I owe you dinner. This is not optional. Call me._

And then a number.

“Oh, shit.” She ran a hand through her hair and winced. “Was she, uh… you know. Mad?”

“I… you know, it’s really hard to tell with her, but I don’t  _think_  so? She told Pyrrha we take care of people, so I’m  _pretty_  sure there’s no hard feelings.”

“Pyrrha?”

“Yeah, our, uh, new parts runner. Her interview was this morning, remember?”

“Oh, right. Sorry, brain’s a little scrambled.” Dragging a hand down her face, she let out a deep sigh. “Guess I have to call her… is Blake in trouble?”

Ruby winced. “Jury’s still out on that.”

“Great.” Shrugging, she looked at the piece of paper again. “Think I should call now or wait?”

“Blake said she usually wakes up in about an hour.”

“Wait it is.” Tucking it into her pocket, she looked around the garage. “Got something small I can do in the meantime?” 

“There’s an inspection waiting outside. Think you can grab it?”

“Done.” Anxiety lurked in the back of her mind but she realized there was nothing to do but wait.

Wait and hope.


End file.
